Free Tenderloin (Abby Kane FBI Thriller) by Ty Hutchinson

roads.”
    My jaw unhinged and swayed in the wind. My reaction must have made me look like a newbie agent.
    “Still interested in pursuing the other victim?”
    “Of course,” I blurted out. I wasn’t about to be seen as the weaker half of the team. I honestly didn’t know what a hike in the jungle would entail, but I wasn’t afraid. How hard could it be?

 
     
    Chapter 16
     
    The following day, we touched down at Mitú Airport a little before noon. Even though I slept most of the plane ride, I still felt a bit groggy when Cabrera woke me. What struck me first as I exited the plane was the noticeable moisture in the air. I quickly retrieved my sunglasses from my purse to shield my eyes from the bright light reflecting off the ground, the plane, and the buildings at the small airport. I had purposely hydrated before going to sleep last night to avoid any headaches. No need for the sun to foil any of my plans.
    The black tarmac was unforgiving in the heat. It didn’t take long for perspiration to bubble up on my forehead during the seventy-yard walk to the terminal building. My steps were slow and sticky. I kept my head down and wondered how a few brave weeds could dare to make their home in this manmade desert. As I walked along the empty airfield, only one thought came to mind: Couldn’t the captain have parked the plane closer? I retrieved a napkin from my purse and dabbed gently.
    “It’s the jungle.”
    “Huh?”
    “The jungle,” Cabrera motioned with his head toward the distant tree line. “It’s what makes it much more humid here than Bogotá.”
    “What else can the jungle do?”
    “It kills people who aren’t careful.”
    A little dramatic, aren’t we?
    As my time in Colombia continued to grow and the trip I had envisioned grew less and less recognizable, I briefly rethought investigating the second body.
    When we reached our hotel forty minutes later, I was beat. The heat had sapped my energy, making me want to do nothing but sit still in icy, air-conditioned bliss. Thankfully, I’d had the foresight to pack a pair of shorts. I couldn’t imagine walking around in jeans. I changed into a tank top and slipped a thin cotton buttondown over that to hide my holster on my hip. A pair of hiking boots finished off my outfit.
    I met up with Cabrera in the lobby where he handed me water. “It’s important we stay hydrated.”
    I thanked him and took the bottle.
    “The local officer who is handling Riggs’s case is scheduled to meet us here any minute. He’ll drive us out to the location where they found the body.”
    Just as Cabrera finished giving me the heads up, a dark-skinned man dressed in a khaki uniform approached us. “Dom,” he said, extending his arm, “it’s good to see you again.”
    Cabrera shook the man’s hand. “It’s been too long, my friend.”
    I watched the two men hug it out like they were old college buddies. I hadn’t been aware that Cabrera knew the officer so well.
    He then turned to me with his arm out. “David, I’d like you to meet Agent Abby Kane. She’s with the FBI and is here to help with the investigation of Agent Riggs’s death.”
    The man with a smile larger than Cabrera’s took my hand and gave it an enthusiastic shake. “I’m Captain David Gómez, but you may call me David. I’m sorry to hear about the attack at the office.”
    Oh, I hadn’t realized my situation had become news.
    “I mentioned it to David when I spoke with him yesterday,” Cabrera offered, sensing my surprise. “He had his men reach out to some informants. Maybe some information about this guy will show up.”
    “Nothing so far,” Gómez said.
    “Same thing on our end,” Cabrera added. “The fingerprints came up empty.”
    Seriously? You didn’t think to mention that to me? “They did?”
    “Sorry, Abby. I got a text earlier from my contact. I should have told you sooner.”
    I hoped this wasn’t his way of protecting me from bad news. Maybe he’d forgotten that I